In Love With An Alpha

I hit the ground with a loud crash and winced at the pain that shot up my back.

"You have to focus if you actually want to win Hayley," I heard my sister Elena sneer.

Elena and I are polar opposites. She is about three years older than me and while she stops at a meager 5 foot 4 inches; I'm a whopping five foot nine. The there's also the fact that she looks exactly like my mother with her gorgeous black hair and green eyes while I look like my dad with a mess of unruly ginger hair and hazel eyes.

"Focus Hayley," she spat, "It's no use fighting someone who isn't even paying attention."

"Your sister is right," I heard my dad say, "If this was a real battle then you would have been dead a long time ago."

"If this was a real battle I would not be anywhere near the fights. I would be with the healers in the hospital and Elena would be with the watchmen." I retorted and I saw Elena's eyes narrow.

"You seem so confident that you'll never be in the middle of a battle Hayley," she said, "And sometimes you don't go to the battle; it comes to you."

"Elena is," dad began but I cut him off.

"Right, I know."

His eyes narrowed and he shot me that look that would make most people cower but as his daughter who has been on the receiving end of that look one too many times I'm pretty much immune to it.

As the alpha of the Shadow Keeper's pack, he is used to people being intimidated by him so the fact that I'm not cowering in fear seemed to set him off.

"Alright then, since you're so cocky," he spat,

"We'll train with your powers."

"But dad," Elena began and he turned to her with a soft look in his eye.

"No Elena," he said, "Since she clearly doesn't want to train then let her go."

Elena looked at me for a second before moving closer to dad to whisper In his ears but I could still hear her.

"I don't need to train my powers; I don't know how to do that anyways," she said softly,

"She's just trying to embarrass me."

"There is nothing to be embarrassed about." He said firmly, "You are the better fighter and that is why she's choosing to run away."

I rolled my eyes at their conversation; I'm literally sitting in front of them and they're talking like I'm not even here and dad is just lying through his teeth. I'm the better fighter and we all know that; the only reason Elena got the upper hand on me is because she threw dirt in my eyes.

Elena turned to me briefly then back to dad and he gave her an encouraging nod to which she turned to me.

"Alright then Hayley; you can go train your powers while I stay and work on my fighting." She said, "The goddess knows that someone actually needs to be able to defend herself around here."

"You could actually try working on your powers," I said with a shrug and she scowled, "They may just improve."

"Oh go fuck yourself," she spat with narrowed eyes.

"What are you talking about; I'm just trying to help."

"Oh little Miss Perfect Hayley with her stupid healing powers."

"My powers aren't stupid." I said and she rolled her eyes.

"They're not beneficial anywhere except in the damn hospital." It stung that she thought that way and I scowled at myself. If she wanted to play dirty then I can play dirty.

"Well at least they're better than being able to see far away; who needs that anyways?" I asked with a scoff, "All werewolves have that ability; it's not special."

"I can see miles further than any wolf." She spat and I shrugged and picked at my nails like she wasn't important.

"Semantics."

She scowled and turned to our father, "Daddy are you seeing this?"

"Stop making fun of your sister Hayley." He warned and I shot her a hard glare.

I was about to leave quietly when I heard her mutter 'entitled bitch' under her breath and I swear red swarmed my vision.

I won't let her have the last word like that so I turned to her and spoke so softly that my voice was barely over a whisper.

"In a fight," I began and she narrowed her eyes at me, "who has the advantage?" I asked and I saw her grit her teeth like I knew she would. 'Who's more important? A healer or someone who can see very far?

The quote, ' Who has the advantage?' is from a book, The Red Queen and it upsets her all the time because she knows I will always have the advantage. It's a good strategy if I want to get her riled up and like expected it works because she scowled.

"I do."

She growled and attacked.

I side stepped her making her fall to the ground but she got up immediately and circled me.

"I will end you bitch." She growled to which I smiled.

"Come at me."

She pounced again and this time I was able to judo flip her onto her back and she winced but rose to her feet again.

"Stop!" I heard dad order and I was about to stand down but I saw her try to claw at my face so I grabbed her arm and twisted it behind her back until it was held at an awkward angle.

"Stop fighting Elena." I warned but she wouldn't listen and kept on trying to escape my hold, "If you don't stop then you'll break your arm."

"You're lying." She spat.

"I'm a healer; I know where pressure points are and I most definitely know how to snap a bone," I said, "So I'm going to say it one more time; stop moving."

She huffed and finally stopped and I let go of her hand. She paused to rub it but made sure to send me wicked glares.

I was about to leave when I felt a hand on my shoulder and before I could comprehend it I was spun around and a hand landed hard against my cheek.

I was face to face with a fuming dad. He was so upset that his cheeks were flushed red and his eyes looked feral. "When I tell you to stop then you stop."

He growled and my mouth fell open "I did stop; Elena attacked me."

"You riled her up," he said and I opened my mouth to protest but he raised his hand again and I went silent, "She is your older sister ad you will treat her with the respect she deserves."

I wish I could say that I was surprised but the truth is that I'm not. I'm used to this behavior from dad but I am too riled up to even remember to keep my mouth shut and take the caution in stride.

"Look at her." I said pointing at Elena who was wrapped in our mum's arms and shedding fake tears in an attempt to garner sympathy,

"She's a slobbering mess. When she acts like my older sister then I will treat her like my older sister." I anticipated the hit before it landed and this time he made sure to wipe my feet out from under me so I fell to the ground in a heap.

He landed a kick to my ribs and I felt the bone shatter. "I don't know where I went wrong with you,' he spat, "Get up and clean yourself up; we have the beta's family coming over for dinner today."

I pulled myself up and shot one last scathing look at all of them before leaving. I made my way to the forest first because that has always been like a second home to me.

The trees and the herbs were so familiar and so constant. Rosemary would always be rosemary and they wouldn't treat me like trash. I got a few herbs to help with my broken ribs and I made my way back to the beautiful prison that I call home.

Our house is pretty large and even with the assortments of rooms I still got stuck in the smallest room of the house downstairs while all my family members slept on the third floor not that I mind though.

I like my privacy and on days like this you would be surprised how often they happen, it was always easier knowing that I didn't have to climb three flights of stairs to get to them.

I locked my door behind me and mixed up the herbs letting a bit of my magic flow into the drink I was making and then I downed it in one gulp. It tasted like crap but I know it'll kick in and start working in under fifteen minutes. In the mean time I stripped and made my way into the shower for a Soothing hot bath.

I had to be careful while showering because the skin around my ribs had started to turn red and it was slightly sore. After I finished I rubbed some ointment against it and changed into a simple sleeveless blue pink dress.

The top clinched onto my more than ample bust and the bottom flared out around me.

I double checked to make sure I was presentable before making my way to the dining room. As soon as Elena saw me she scoffed, "Slut."

She spat and I raised a brow at her. She was wearing a form fitting navy blue dress that stuck to her like second skin; it showed off more than enough of her very tiny bust and it stopped barely below her ass but I'm the slut here.

My parents arrived and Elena immediately ran up to them.

"Daddy, Hayley is dressed like a little whore." She said and my dad's eyes ran over my outfit, "Is she allowed to do that?" "I can't tell her to change right now because our guests are already here," he said then turned to me,

"At least they'll have some eye candy to look at." Elena smirked and skipped over to open the door, "Maybe I'll give you to them if it makes them more compliant."

I swallowed down the bile that grew in my throat and turned away to hide my disgust knowing it would only encourage him to act on his words.

I schooled my face into a cool expressionless mask and forced a smile on my face as I saw Elena return with Nick my father's beta and his mate Nina. My dad embraced him and Nina and led them over to the dining table.

I gave them a small smile but didn't speak as per dad's instructions. I was to be the pretty little side piece and it was going perfectly until Nick decided to include me in the conversation.

"So Hayley, Nina tells me you're on your way to becoming one of the top doctors at the pack hospital." He said and my eyes briefly flashed to dad. Did I mention Nina was kind of my boss? "Nina has always been so nice but I don't think I'm that good yet." I said and Nina gasped. "Nonsense; she's even better than half the doctors there."

All the praise seemed to be getting to Elena because she scoffed, "It's not like she deserves it; she just uses her powers, she isn't that skilled." "Actually she is; I've seen her uses proper medical equipment to diagnose and treat a patient."

Nina said and Nick nodded but Elena wasn't having it.

"It's her powers that are making it so easy for her." She said with venom lacing her voice, "If she trained like everyone else then maybe she would be deserving of half the praise you're giving her."

"Even if it's her powers that are making it easy for her; it takes a lot of skill and dedication to master those powers." Nick interjected and Elena grit her teeth so hard that I feared they would break. She didn't reply but she speared the meat on her plate so hard that her fork clanked against the plate loudly and the entire room went quiet.

"So Nick; how are the new recruits." Dad said in an attempt to diffuse the situation and Nick went into full details about the new recruits and although dad was listening to him I saw him flash me a warning look; one that promised punishment later.

The rest of the dinner went by smoothly and I didn't say another word. In fact, I didn't listen to what was being said around the dinner table until I heard the word ball and I perked up.

"Did I just hear you say ball?" Elena asked voicing my earlier thoughts and my father nodded.

"We will be hosting a ball in a few days and there will be a lot of important guests in attendance.

It is a good way to form new alliances with other packs," he said and Elena clapped in glee, "It has to go smoothly and I will not tolerate anyone or anything ruining it." He said the last part while looking directly at me but I kept my eyes straight on my food and didn't give him the satisfaction of seeing my fear.

"Will all the neighboring Alphas be there?" Elena asked and this time it was Nick who replied.

"Of course they will be," he said, "And there is even the possibility that Alpha Lance is going to attend."

"No way." Elena said voicing my disbelief and dad nodded with pride. Alpha Lance is one of the hardest people to get to. He keeps to himself and rarely ever attends functions.

The fact that dad was able to get him to attend this one says a lot for our pack.

"Well he didn't exactly say he was going to come." Nick interjected and I saw dad flash him a sour look and Elena's face fell, "He did RSVP and say he would attend if he is free."

"And that is as good as a yes."

Dad said firmly and I held back my snort. Anyone who has heard of Alpha Lance knows that the reply he gave is as good as a no. Dad seemed to sense the directions of my thoughts because he narrowed his eyes at me,

"Do you have something to say Hayley?" I faced him and shook my head slightly but he wasn't letting down,

"Do you think he'll come or not?" I stayed quiet for a few seconds debating my answer. Saying yes would mean disagreeing with Nick and saying no would mean disagreeing with dad; both of which are going to get me in trouble with dad.

"I wouldn't know," I said finally, "I don't know the full story nor do I know Alpha Lance the way the both of you do so it would be impossible and unwise for me to have an opinion."

"Smart girl."

Dad said and I knew I had passed whatever messed up test he wanted to put me through. The men finally left to talk in dad's office and mum and Nina went to the living room to talk but before they left they ordered me to clear up the dishes.

I was clearing up the table when I heard Elena on the phone.

"Amy you will not believe what I just found out." She said and I rolled my eyes. She was talking to her best friend and huge bitch Amelia.

"Daddy just told me that Alpha Lance is coming for the ball." There was silence before she spoke again,

"I don't know when the ball is but can you imagine?" she squealed, 'He is going to take one look at me and fall madly in love and then we'll realize we're mates and he is going to take me away."

This time I couldn't help my snort and I saw her freeze before she turned and noticed me by the wall, "I'll call you back Amy; I have to deal with a minor inconvenience."

Wow so I'm a minor inconvenience now. She ended the call and whirled on me, "What are you looking at bitch?" she asked and I raised my hands in mock surrender.

"I was just going back to my room." I made to go to my room but she stopped me. "Did you find what I said funny?" she asked, "What? You think that Alpha Lance is going to spare you a glance?"

"I'm not interested in Alpha Lance," I said simply and she scoffed. "Then you're even a bigger fool than I thought."

She deadpanned, "He is the hottest and not to mention the most powerful Alpha ever; he has the entire council in his pocket." "I don't care about power."

"Of course you don't; since you were basically showered with It." She spat then took a calming breath and turned to me, "It doesn't matter anyway; Alpha Lance is going to fall in love with me and I will never have to see your horrible face again."

"Good riddance." I muttered under my breath and she rolled her eyes at me. "I only have to tolerate you for a few more days then I will be the Luna of the most powerful pack in the world and you will be nothing but dirt under my shoes."

"And what if this brilliant plan of yours doesn't work?" I asked and she frowned, "What if he isn't your mate? What if he's in love with someone else? What's going to happen then?"

"Alpha Lance is mine."

She growled, "And you would do well to remember it." She walked over to the dining table and tipped over the bowl of casserole, "Oopsie."

I grit my teeth but didn't say a word and grabbed a rag to clean it up. I had knelt to the floor when she stepped in front of me and I forced my eyes up to her. "Oh and Hayley," she began,

"You should probably start practicing calling me Luna Elena because that is what I am going to be within the next week."

She gave me a wicked smile and a small wave and sauntered off.

You know a part of me actually hopes that she is Alpha Lance's mate; that way I will never have to see her horrible face again but another more quiet part of me hopes that she isn't so I can see the look of defeat and utter shame on her face when she realizes.